Absentee Ballots can be requested by any voter registered in Durham County or the voter's near relative (Near relative includes spouse, sibling, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, step-parent, or step-child.) or verifiable legal guardian. (Power of Attorney is not the same as legal guardian. Power of Attorney does not give an individual the right to sign for another for an Absentee Ballot.)

Requests can be made only for the elections to be held in the calendar year that the request is made.

Military and Overseas Voters:

You are encouraged to use the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA) to request your Absentee Ballot. If you are not registered to vote in Durham County it will also serve to accomplish that. Please fill it out as thoroughly as possible and mail/fax/scan and email to us at your earliest convenience. For military and overseas voters, that will insure you get ballots for all elections to be held this calendar year. Click here for more information and registration/request forms.

If you have any questions, please contact the Board of Elections at the 919-560-0700, or email: absentee@dconc.gov (See below for email tips*)

* Email tips: Durham County employs various levels of spam blockers. (More than 95% of the email sent to Durham County is spam.) Public email accounts such as gmail, yahoo, hotmail, etc. will usually make it through, with perhaps some delay the first time they are sent. Accounts from other countries will almost certainly be blocked. (These are email addresses that end in .country abbreviation). Receipt acknowledgements/replies will be sent within a few days. (Please allow time for holidays, weekends and email filter delays.) If you do not receive a reply, try sending your request by a different email account, fax or mail.

November 8, 2016 General Election Absentee Ballot By Mail Schedule

September 9, 2016 First day Absentee Ballots by Mail will be mailed out

October 14, 2016 Voter Registration Deadline for Voting on Election Day
(registrations must be received at BOE office or postmarked by no later than 5:00pm)

November 1, 2016 Last day for Civilian Voters to submit an Absentee Ballot by Mail request
(request form must be received at BOE office by no later than 5:00 PM)

November 7, 2016 Last day for Military and Overseas Voters to submit an Absentee Ballot by Mail request
(request form must be received at BOE office by no later than 5:00 PM)

November 8, 2016 Deadline for Civilian Voters to return voted Absentee Ballots by Mail
(absentee ballots must be received at BOE office no later than 5:00 PM)

November 8, 2016 Last day for Military and Overseas Voters to return voted Absentee Ballots by Mail
(request form must be received at BOE office by no later than 7:30 PM)

Please note: Absentee Ballots cannot be accepted at any polling place on Election Day. Absentee Ballots can be accepted at the BOE office no later than 5:00 PM on Election Day, however those ballots can only be delivered by the voter, near relative, or verifiable legal guardian.

Note: For some voters, an alternative to requesting an Absentee Ballot by Mail is to vote in person during Early Voting.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Who is qualified to vote Absentee Ballot by Mail?-Any registered voter may vote an absentee ballot. No reason is required.

How can I receive an Absentee Ballot by Mail?-In order to receive an absentee ballot you must first complete a request form. This form is available here on our website or you may call, email, or mail us a request to send you the form. You will not be able to receive an absentee ballot unless this required form is properly completed and signed by the voter or requester.

May I request an Absentee Ballot by Mail for someone else?-If you are a near relative (spouse, sibling, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, father-in-law, mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, step-parent, or step-child) or a verifiable legal guardian you may request a ballot by completing the required request form. **Please Note: Power of Attorney is not the same as legal guardian. Power of Attorney does not give an individual the right to sign for another for a request or the absentee ballot.

May I mail my voted Absentee Ballot together with another voter's Absentee Ballot in the same envelope?-Each voter receives an absentee ballot return envelope. That envelope is specific to each voter and should be returned only with that voters completed ballot inside.

Is there a way to check and see if my Absentee Ballot by Mail request has been received and if my voted Absentee Ballot has been received and processed?-You can check the status of your absentee request and returned ballot by clicking here